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kuhn rikon peeler handle mods? / peeler murderer

i unintentionally murder peelers. this plastic crap has got to go.

I've been working with butternut squash all weekend and my hand is now hurting from my peeler. I've been dicing the squash and I peel it first with the kuhn rikon. I have questionable skills, first and foremost so I'm not saying I'm using proper techniques or doing anything correct in anyway.. but holyshiat my hand is hurting. i'm sure it'll be fine but in the meantime ... I'm considering my 'peeler' alternatives.

I dig the sharpness of the kuhn rikon peeler, but the flat handle is giving me a hard time.

My ideal would be ... give me a handle that i can hold on to, and i only replace the blade when it gets dull.

I've tried holding it in different manners. I first start out with holding it like a guitar pick when your strumming a guitar. This works good for light duty veggies. I was up to my ears in butt squash and i started to feel fatigue in my wrist, so started holding the peeler in a way in which I didn't move my wrist but just my arm: the peeler's blade was basically perpendicular-ish to my wrist was and the handle was set into my palm/fingers. This gave me great action and leverage with the peeler with minimal effort and all the movement came from my shoulder and elbow and not my wrist. But the effort in holding onto the peeler after a while was ridiculous, my hand went numb holding it this way and I eased up my grasp on it after I noticed.

If I could make/get a handle that i could easily hold in my palm (something thicker than the rikon handle)... like a T-handled allen wrench.. or a rounded butt that would fit into my palm.

Here is a quick drawing trying to describe how i'm holding it to peel the squash:http://imgur.com/sbIZm5J
Forgive my artistic ability.

I peel butternut squash w a knife. Cut the bulb off, stand up the top and then slice off the skin. Repeat with bulb half.

Okay, I need a video of this Train my arse with these skills and I will be unstoppable. Soon world domination will be next.

I will video tape how quickly I can peel a butternut squash with a peeler, I'm a freak.. but I wonder if you do it quicker than me with a knife!

I guess I would have an issue with peeling the bulby end with the knife or even if the squash was more of a hour glass shape (both ends bulby) than the one end being cylindrical. I would love to see your technique and try and mimic it. I got lots of squash and need the practice.

The Kuhn Rikon are a little fine for squash, I use a swissmar for my squash, and a rikon for baby carrots and asparagus, the blade isn't wide enough for squash typically on those peelers. The swissmar's come in three different blade width sizes if you look at the back, they will generally be numbered 1, 2 or 3, unless they are in the pack of swissmar julienne/serrated/ peeler pack. Using a knife is better than a kuhn rikon, but if you find a large sized swissmar, it will be annhilating cases of squash in no time, they will even do acorn squash no problem.

That's the best peeler that I've ever used Gravy. The rigidity of the blade and overall peeler makes cutting thought tougher stuff easier. The OTB edge on the blade is good, but the ability to remove the blade and sharpen it allows you to get an edge sharper than any other peeler. I used EP stones, but sandpaper over a narrow piece of wood would work fine too.

As for ergonomics: I think that the OP has got the right idea of limiting wrist motion as much as possible. Having the sharpest possible blade that requires the least effort will also help.

If you want to mod you handle you could try roughing it out with wood glued, screwed, and wired to the existing handle. Then smooth over it with tape. Once you've got a shape you like, you can seal it all with plasti dip (http://www.plastidip.com/). Multiple coatings will give you a pretty even finish, but there may still be some little pin-holes in the surface from bubbles. If you want to go full-on obsessive compulsive, you can seal it all with a few coats of CA glue.